


This Journal is Property of Marco Bott

by Sarcastic_Raspberry



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alive Marco Bott, Dark Marco Bott, Evil Marco Bott, Minor Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss/Ymir, Multi, One-Sided Jean Kirstein/Marco Bott, One-sided Jean Kirstein/Mikasa Ackerman, Titan Marco Bott
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-31
Updated: 2015-01-31
Packaged: 2018-03-09 21:23:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3264827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarcastic_Raspberry/pseuds/Sarcastic_Raspberry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Marco Bott kept a small record of his life and (however patchy it is) it has been copied here for your viewing pleasure.<br/>((Spoilers for those who haven't read up to Chapter 64 of the Manga. If you're looking for a love story, I'm sorry. Pairings are mentioned, but there is no actual actions taken in that direction. I may update with more "Entries"  if the manga develops any further in the titan shifter arch, but I probably won't.))</p>
            </blockquote>





	This Journal is Property of Marco Bott

This Journal is Property of Marco Bott

* * *

I’ve never had a journal before, but I think that this is a good way to organize my thoughts. You see, I’ve spent the last few years as a titan. By a few, I mean about one hundred. Maybe a few more, but that’s not the point. It’s hard to keep track when you’re on your own. They left me up here. It’s cold up here, but a titan’s body heat is really high, so that’s okay.

I know I say I’m over a hundred, but I look really young. My dad says I act like it too. He’s not my real dad, I know that, but he said I can call him that. He said I’m going to meet my little sister soon, and it’ll be my job to protect her every step of the way. We have eight years to spend together. Well, I’m going to spend three years sleeping in my titan body. Annie, my sister, is going to fight me for practice sometime before I wake up.

I hope I don’t kill her. Dad says that would be bad.

The reason I call him dad is because he taught me how to read, write, and speak. He said that now he has to teach me how to act like a kid.

I wish I could write so much more, but dad says that if I don’t get to sleep when I’m supposed to, I’m going to age when I’m not supposed to and then they won’t wake me up when I want to. I think that would make me sad, because then I wouldn’t get to meet my sister.

* * *

Today was great! It’s been three years and now I’m finally awake. Annie was surprised at first and so was I. She looks my age, but dad says she’s a lot younger than I am. He says she was only seven when he told me about her three years ago. That’s how long it’s been since I made this entry. She said it was scary when I came out of my titan body, but I remember seeing her. She was scary, but she was pretty too. So it told her that.

I gave her a big smile (because that’s the polite thing to do) and walked forward. Dad jumped but stayed back when I touched her shoulders. She may look my age, but she’s super short so I had to bed really low to give her a hug when I told her “You’re scary too. You’re my pretty and scary sister. I think it’s great that you find me scary too, because that means it’ll be really easy to protect you. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

She started hugging me too after a while, but then I felt her jerking away. I didn’t know what to do because dad always held me for a long time. So I didn’t pull off. That was when I felt hands grab on my shoulders and throw me on the ground. I looked up and saw a really tall boy. He told me I was hurting her, and he was really angry. But I was angry too.

When I jumped up and tackled him I felt someone pounding on my back. I knew it wasn’t Annie or dad, because they were standing in front of us. I managed to keep the boy down but the other guy got his hands around my neck so I stood up and fell back.

I may have been in a titan body when I learned how to fight, but it translates. Trust me. Now they were both on the floor and I could see that the other boy was really big. He wasn’t big like the other boy, but he was big in the shoulders. They were both glaring at me and dad stood in front of me.

He was on my side and told them that I didn’t mean to. That I didn’t know my own strength. I wasn’t sure what that meant because I know I’m really strong, but then I saw that Annie was holding her arm really tightly and started crying bit. I was really sorry for what I’d done, but I don’t know how to tell her. Maybe I’ll try tomorrow.

* * *

I wasn’t allowed to talk to Annie today. Dad says I’m not in trouble, but she’s busy helping Reiner and Bertholdt- the other boys from yesterday- pack up the house at the bottom of the mountain. They’re moving to another town with me and dad. That makes me happy because I won’t be alone anymore.

But I’m also really scared because I think I might hurt Annie again, and then those boys will get mad at me and I’ll do something bad again.

I told dad this, and he told me not to worry because I’d get the hang of it one day. He said one day, I’d look like the most gentle person in the world. But he also said that I’d be the most dangerous. I’m not sure how that works, but I’m willing to do whatever he wants.

He’s the best dad I’ve ever had. The other ones didn’t visit as much as he does, and none of them actually let me stay out this long. He says I get to stay out for as long as I want now!

But after he told me that, he said I had to get used to other people. I couldn’t stay close to Annie forever. He said it would be suspicious.

I don’t know what that word means, but I didn’t ask. I had to pack this journal up in my clothes and run out to the carriage dad had ready. Now I’m sitting in the back. Dad almost saw it when I pulled it out to write, but he’s asleep now. This notebook was supposed to be for my alphabet.

Now the driver says we’re getting close to a town now, and is yelling at me that I have to turn out the lantern. I’m not sure I like that. I don’t know what it’s like to sleep for real. I haven’t done that in so long. I’m afraid of the dark. But I guess I have to get used to it. He’s pulling the wagon over and I know what he’s going to do. Dad is gonna wake up and ride with him to keep bandits away while I lay down under a wagon cover in the back. That means it’s going to be really dark. I won’t like it.

* * *

Hello Journal. It’s been a while, and that’s because dad and I finally met up with Annie, Reiner, and Bertholdt. Reiner and Bertholdt don’t have a dad like Annie and I do, or a momma. But they said that’s okay because they have each other. I don’t really get that part. Maybe it’s because I haven’t really known Annie that long. Anyway, I haven’t really gotten time alone to write for a while. We all share a room (except dad because he sleeps in the living room) but that’s okay because our room is really big and we have bunk beds. I’ve never actually had a normal bed before, but I’m really happy. Annie’s afraid of heights, so she let me have the top bunk (and she’s too short to climb up but I didn’t say anything) and Bertholdt has the other one. Reiner sleeps under him.

There’s also a really big chest of toys for us to play with under the window between the bunks. I’ve never played with toys before (that I can remember) but it’s super fun! I haven’t hurt anyone in the past month, but Bertholdt still looks at me angrily. Reiner’s okay though. He even gave me a piggy back ride one time because he’s super strong. Most of the time, he’s carrying Annie. That’s okay though because little sisters shouldn’t walk everywhere. Especially not my little sister.

One time, we played a game where Reiner and Bertholdt were knights and Annie was a princess. I got to be the evil dragon. My job was to keep Annie in the closet while Reiner and Bertholdt fought me with sticks.

I’m really glad that they explained I wasn’t supposed to actually hurt them. Dad made sure I knew that really well before we started. They couldn’t hurt me either. Instead, they had to poke really gentle on the front or slide it between my arm and my side. I was growling and blowing fire on them. It was really fun until Bertholdt poked me on the chest. Then I had to lie on the ground like I was dead with Reiner, who I’d burned earlier.

He walked over to the closet and opened it up. Annie looked really happy and smiled. She called him her hero and he even put her on his shoulders and walked around while Annie said “Hip hip! Hooray!” over and over again. I kept on thinking he was gonna drop her because he’s really tall and not very strong. Soon, he set her down and Reiner and I were allowed to get up again. We didn’t play again because it was time to eat.

We might play tomorrow, but dad says that they might be too tired. And besides, we have to move again.

They went out today with two men. Apparently, they’re titans too. I think everyone’s a titan but dad.

* * *

It’s been a while since I found this old thing. It got lost in the move. Sorry Journal.

Many my sentences were really disjointed. I’m so glad that I’ve grown up somewhat. It’s been about two years. Maria has been destroyed, and we had to group up with the refugees. Everyone made it back safely. Well, the ones I cared about did. We have a new house now- up in a small mountain village. Reiner and Bertholdt often say it reminds them of their first home before the titans attacked.

I’m surprised they can remember back that far, in all honesty. It’s really quite amazing. I can’t remember anything before I became a titan. Even after that, I only remember after I was first cut out of my body.

I was physically ten, but I believe I was around thirty at that time. Some of the scientists we’re working with say that titan shifters don’t age in their titan forms due to the connections we have with our bodies. If I was to grow the smallest inch, the nerves would move and become useless, and it could even injure me. So it’s a survival thing. As with all others.

I like our new house, if it means anything. I always have. Annie’s older than she was. She’s the only one of us who actually looks her age. We’re so much older than her. Now that she’s getting older, she has to learn how to defend herself properly. Using titan strength won’t help in your human form. Dad’s teaching her all sorts of techniques. It’s kind of scary if I have to be honest with you, which I guess I don’t. I still baby her, even if I’m not as over powering as I used to be.

I’ve learned a few things- and I’m one hell of an actor if I have to say so my self. I think it comes with the territory of being a shifter.

Bert’s still an ass. He doesn’t accept the fact that dad chose me as our decoy. He doesn’t get that I’m the fastest out of us all. Well, maybe Annie. But she has a more important role. I’m the human distraction, you see. I’ll never shift in this plan. Dad says I’m going to go through a lot of pain, and I’m willing to. This is my family. I’ll protect them all.

They’re practicing outside now. Dad has to train with me separately. I’m starting to learn OMD gear we got off the black market.

We’ve come a long way from what I wrote in you, Journal. We’re not a bunch of brats playing make believe with sticks. Dad says I’m going to move out to Wall Maria on my own after my part in the plan is complete. I understand my objective. I have the ability to get us from Wall Rose to Beledge. That’s where I need to be when they get what we came here to get. Dad’s gonna stay here in Rose, and move on to Sina when he has to. That’s where we’ll meet up again. Just hang on dad.

We know we’re going to be leaving him a few weeks to join the army. It makes me sad, but we’ll all be together, at the least. I’m not allowed to talk with them often though, but that’ll be okay. We’ll have three years of bliss where I can keep an eye on them and I don’t have to worry. We’ll be safe.

* * *

We’re finally on the wagon to the Trost training sight. Trost is a merchant town, and our next target. Again, I don’t have to worry about that four three years. Dad took a long time when he hugged Annie goodbye. It hurt me a little.

He told me last night that he barely recognized me. I thought he was saying it with pride, like I was growing up. I should have known that he doesn’t see me like he sees Annie- his real daughter. I’m just an adoption. A pawn. That’s okay with me. Annie still sees me like a brother, and even Bert has warmed up to me on a small scale.

We still hate each other though. I can tell it’s gonna be rough with me as a leader having him as a subordinate. He’s opinionated, and likes to throw around his weight. Reiner and Annie are the only things keeping us from tearing each other apart while we ride alone in the back of this wagon. We’re closing in on the military signups. I have to go on foot from here. Until next time.

* * *

I’m so happy that there are idiots in this world. Signups went through without a hitch, and they even overlooked my lack of an origin, just like dad said they would. The military is so stupid. I have to say, I am a bit embarrassed about what happened when that commander was coming around. You see, I’ve spent weeks perfecting this characterization of the “golden soldier”. Sort of a, “For king and country” white knight that everyone loves.

And then this guy comes around and I give him my shpeal, only for him to throw the truth in my face. The king doesn’t care about us. It shook me up enough so that I was just standing there, saying nothing. I think the others read it as shock, but it was really just me wondering if I should outright agree. I have to admit, I’m not that good at thinking on my feet. Combat is one thing, conversation is another.

I’m not as bad as these other idiots though. One of them didn’t know the salute, another one was caught eating during the walk around- more on that later- and then there was this pompous asshole who decided to stand next to me.

I mean, it was honest of him to say that he was looking for a plush life in Sina, but he had to understand that that kind of talk wasn’t appropriate, right? He deserved getting smacked in the head for that.

But back to the girl who was caught eating, I have never had to fight the urge to laugh so hard in my entire life. This girl was just the stupidest thing on two legs I have ever seen. After she was caught eating a steamed potato, of all things, the commander came over to her and asked why she was eating- there was a lot more said that I can’t remember exactly- but basically she said “Are you asking me why people eat potatoes?” and offered him half of it.

Everyone’s outside watching her run until the sun goes down. I can tell she’s going to come by again because I can hear the chattering getting louder. Maybe I’ll join them. I just thought that you’d like to hear about this. I never want to forget it.

* * *

Two entries in one day, new record. I’m adding to the other one because of what happened at dinner.

Apparently this kid- Eren Jaeger- was in Shinganshina when Bertholdt, Reiner, and Annie went there about two years back. He tried to play it off like it was nothing, of course, but I could see that he was starting to squirm, and I really didn’t like his attitude. The whole thing escalated when I saw Bertholdt sweating like a pig in the corner, so I started jumping in with the questions too.

It wasn’t like he’d remember any of them, but they got the conversation going in the right direction. I thought he was going to throw up- some tough guy.

So I decided enough was enough and turned into my selfless white knight act again. So the guy pulls out his iron front again and just goes on about how titans are nothing.

I was kind of glad that Captain Jackass (who I later learned to be named Jean) took that moment to speak up. Bert tried chewing me out for it later, but I think he just needs to understand that, unlike him, I know what I’m doing. Anyway, I think I’m going to try keeping away from that guy for a while. He’s a nut job.

Jean on the other hand, sounds like he could be useful in the least. I’ll keep him in mind. I don’t like his attitude about… well, most things really. But I think I can put up with it. All I have to do is keep him out of trouble. Maybe he could even join the Military Police with me. That would be fun.

* * *

Oh my gosh what a mistake I made. I’m definitely not taking anyone into the Military Police with Annie and I. I know I don’t really have a choice, but I am not paving a path. It wasn’t like I was serious in the first place, but that’s hardly the point I was planning to make.

He just got his ass kicked by Eren. Like, handed to him on a silver platter. I thought this guy was mildly okay at best. Now he’s just an idiot.

That’s all I really have, surprisingly. Wow this place is boring. Training- idiots- training- idiots-

Day in and day out it’s just training and idiots. It’s not the house was much better, but honestly, these three years can’t happen fast enough.

* * *

Training with the OMD gear in the past few days. It’s pretty okay. Put on a good show like I was supposed to. Kept up the “interested” appearance while they were showing us how to put the straps on. People were idiots, as usual, but I have to say they aren’t half bad. Yea it’s just hanging in one place, but it really is an inborn skill.

And then there’s Jaeger. How does one fail at sitting in one place and literally just hanging there for a few seconds? The world may never know. I mean, yea, I’m experienced in this. But that isn’t an excuse for this garbage. Now he’s asking around. Even tried sucking up to me as an “Expert”. It makes me wonder though, am I giving off the air of someone that has to be persuaded? I thought I was doing a wonderful impression of a doormat. Oh well. Bert and Reiner just took him and his friend, Armin, up to the sights. I wish I could see the look on his face when he falls again.

They only know the basics of ODM gear, but that’s still more than these newbies do.

His friend Armin, by the way, is actually an interesting guy. I don’t know how it happened, but he managed to chat me up to a conversation on politics. We had a small debate, being that I’m supposed to be all optimistic about our nation’s status. I thought he would be too. In all honesty, I thought everyone was just a servant of the government, but not this guy. He has a mind of his own. I think he lost someone close when the refugees came into Wall Rose. Maybe a parent?

Anyway, I’ll try getting close to him. Yes, even if that means getting close to Jaeger. It looks like this kid is also warming up to Jean- so maybe I’ll have to talk to him some more. Sounds fun.

* * *

Okay, journal. I’m going to be completely honest with you because I know no one is reading a word that goes into this. I like men.

I’ve never liked women the way I like men. I don’t know what it is, but I do.

So now I’m up in the woods in this team of three (assigned of course) and Samuel is passed out by the fire but Jean apparently decided to take a bath- because the freezing temperatures we’re going to be enduring in the upcoming days wasn’t a problem enough- and holy shit. What do I even do? My only experience with relationships has been being Annie’s “brother” and Reiner and Bert’s sort of friend.

* * *

Looks like I won’t have to worry about that. He passed out drawing something earlier, so I peaked over and saw what appeared to be an attempt at drawing a person. I’m not going to sugar coat it, he sucks at it, but I was able to tell who he was drawing. Mikasa Ackerman.

Ugh- straight. How typical. It’s always the hot ones. Or, just the ones in general in my case. Why couldn’t I have gotten lucky like Ymir and found someone at least passive enough to the point where I know they wouldn’t turn me down?

Maybe we can start a “freckled gays” club or something.

Oh, sorry, I guess you don’t know who those two are.

Mikasa is an Asian girl- rare I know- who follows Eren around like a loyal dog and Ymir is the lesbian in the camp who is known to be out of the closet down the hall take a door to your right and furiously making out with the four foot blonde in the corner. This would be Krista. Krista is literally everything I’m trying to be right now. It’s actually kind of suspicious. I have to wonder, could she have any ulterior motives to being in this camp? Or is she just an angelic goddess like everyone says she is?

Whatever it is, I’m immune to it for *cough* obvious reasons.

* * *

Annie’s in love. It’s plain to see. She’s in love with this boy named Armin. I’d never tell her how painfully obvious she is, but he’s a good choice. He has a good head on his shoulders. Sometimes, I think he’s too good. I’m going to have to keep an eye on him in the future but, until then, I can revel in the fact that she won’t end up with Bertholdt any time soon.

If she’s being obvious, then he’s just a hopeless puppy. I hope she kicks him to the side soon, before I have to set him straight that is. I’d hate for any more rivalries to spring up on account of his little crush.

* * *

Ugh I’m such an idiot! No, I’m not an idiot, everyone else is. We just got back from the training exorcise from hell. I know it must seem confusing since I didn’t update you when we came back from the last one (which was a few months back) but this is just too stupid not to write down.

We were sent off on a mission where we were split into two teams and had to basically make a round trip in a certain number of days. I was our team’s leader.

Everything was going great when my idiot and Mikasa’s idiot decided to start fighting because potato girl just had to mention how good lizards tasted. Like I’d even put such a disgusting creature in my mouth.

And then we were raided by bandits who were planning to sell our weapons on the black market. They kidnapped Krista and Eren had to act like some self-sacrificing hero and almost get all of us killed.

I tried getting him to just let us go home but then Jean just had to sign us all up. Arrogant asshole.

Honestly, I wasn’t expecting Sasha to be as useful as she was in helping us. I had to keep saying things to get them to give up, but they were dead set on saving her.

The only thing I could do in the end was help Armin in concocting this stupid plan. I’ve been part of a few OMD gear raids, so it was good enough practice for getting it back. I have to give everyone a bit of credit. There was certainly a lot that could have gone wrong. The plan wasn’t perfect, and we almost lost our lives, but they weren’t half bad.

I may have gotten a little into it, and ended up jumping on the bandwagon when they got away with Krista. It was pretty spectacular.

Armin even thought to call for help and Annie and Mikasa swooped into the rescue from Thomas’s exorcise team.

When it was all said and done, we passed and I even got a word in with that Jaeger kid. I have to say that, as much of an idiot as he is, he does have a good taste in leadership.

Still though, the next time we have a team exorcise, I’m asking if I can work alone.

* * *

Okay, big news: I am now actually going to use this journal for its intended purpose of keeping my mind straight and cleared. Graduation is finally over and, all drama aside, I am going to miss this simple life full of… simple-minded people. Annie ranked second in the top ten of our class, which I am quite proud of as an older brother. I ranked high enough to get up there, yet low enough to be written off. That’s good, and that’s what I needed.

I knew what my purpose was from the beginning: Help Annie infiltrate the Military Police and locate our target (should they be inside) but, so far, I haven’t found anything, and it doesn’t look like anyone important is going to join the Military Police. I say no one important because it appears that Annie and I will be the only two of three in the MP from our ranks. This is odd, but I have to owe it all to Eren Jaeger. He managed to coerce a large number of the others to join the Survey Corps. It looks like Reiner and Bertholdt will have their hands full on their end.

However, that only leaves three people from this squad. It would be easy to sneak Annie out without a group of eight noticing, but one is tricky. Jean will most likely be keen to know when Annie is missing. I’m not worried about the other cadets and certainly not the lax military leaders of the MP themselves, but someone we know is different. Jean isn’t the type to cling to something familiar- in fact, I think he’d soar to new heights as the leader of the MP one day. He’d fit right in with their pompous lifestyle.

But when you walk into a room, you automatically know who’s there and who isn’t unless there’s something to distract from any disappearances. Now, there’s nothing and no one. We’re going to have to weed him out. I’ve come up with a plan: My death.

We could just kill him in the wall break that’s coming up, but I think that would actually hurt me. I’d be unsettled by it, and there is the strong possibility that I will never forgive who gets stuck with the job. That person is most likely to be me anyway. Annie excels in hand to hand combat, which I admire, but she’s not as good with a blade.

We’d have to cut him if we killed him, so that part of his body could be found and his death wouldn’t just be written off as a disappearance, only for him to be found a small while later with a snapped neck.

Reiner, like Annie, is better at hand to hand, and Berthold is only good in the air. I am our best bet.

But I could never do it. I’d break and crumble because I’m still not over him. I wish I could just turn it off, but I can’t help but get this idea in my head that we could be happy. Maybe I’ll return for him when we break the final wall, and father would allow me this one favor as payment. I could teach him how to live all over again, and He’d be happy with me, I just know he would. And Mikasa wouldn’t be here to hurt Annie, or steal him away from me. We’d be perfect, and Annie could even keep Armin- he’s not too useful without someone to carry out his orders after all so he wouldn’t be that hard to control.

Anyway, back to the original point. I don’t want to kill Jean, and I can’t let the others do it either. So, my death is the only option. I know that I can urge him- just a bit- so that he cares about me. Manipulation is one of my stronger points, after all. It’ll be easy. And I’ll break his heart.

* * *

Jaeger is a fucking titan shifter. I am so done with everyone! Of all of the idiots in this place, it had to be the one with a death wish. I didn’t think I’d get around to writing until after my death, but now I’m glad that I brought you with me. This is too important. I guess weeding him out won’t be so bad now. Our target has been realized: The child who carries the history of the titans. I ask again: Why did it have to be that idiot?

* * *

I hate Bertholdt. He’s laughing somewhere, I just know it. I finally woke up about a week after I died. It was agonizing. Not just for me, but for Annie.

I had shoved you in my pocket for safe keeping- the right one. That’s important because the plan was to cut me in half so that a part of me would be left for Jean to find. I didn’t end up in an exact half, but that isn’t my fault. I can’t even really blame the person who did it. I couldn’t trust Bertholdt to do it, knowing how he is, and I believe that Reiner has grown too far into his role as a soldier for this particular job. That only left one option.

My loving younger sister, who I promised I wouldn’t hurt.

Now I’ve hurt her worse than I ever could. She started from the top of my head, and started going down. That’s when I screamed. I didn’t mean to, but I couldn’t stop once I started. When I finally got a hold of myself, I looked up to see that she was crying and she pulled the sword out of the middle of my face.

A titan shifter is fine as long as they aren’t injured along the nape of the neck in a similar way that a regular titan is killed. Of course, the measurements are a bit different, but the point is that I was still alive. Modern science is something we defy every day, and most of that lies in our brains. If the brain is severed, then you can still grown back from the largest side. That’s what happened to me.

But there’s something about cutting someone in half, even if you know they’re going to live, that changes a person like Annie.

I told her that she had to keep going, and that she couldn’t stop. It took her a while, but she started again. I was able to stifle myself for a while, but I started screaming again. The last thing I heard just under that was her repeating the words “I’m sorry” over and over again.

The next thing I remember is waking up in the middle of the growth process.  I was only muscle and bone with the little bit of skin and hair that hadn’t left. I was in a blank rom that I can’t remember too well. I started screaming again from the pain of raw muscle on whatever table I was on at the time. My bones were still setting and weak. I soon passed out from the pain.

When I woke up again, I was hole, and Bertholdt was the only one in the room, with you in his hands. He was laughing at every word I’d written. Not just from when we were kids but from now as well. He knows everything. He tried to be cool, of course, and said that I was lucky that no one found it. He also said that I was too cold for love, and how was Jean supposed to fall for me when he didn’t know who I was? That was right, but I didn’t tell him that, and pointed out how the same went for him and Annie in that case.

He added that that was different because he and Annie are both titan shifters. Armin and Jean can’t come with us to the new world, because they aren’t titans. I don’t care. I want Jean to go with me to the end. If he makes it to that point, then I’ll take him with me. And if Armin makes it too, then I don’t see why I can’t make Annie happy too.

Besides, my plan worked. So at least Jean likes me back. That’s more than he can say.

* * *

Today, we put into action an operation to get Eren from the right flank using Annie’s titan form. This was supposed to be an easy in and easy out scenario. It’s a good thing that I’m not a very trusting person.

I managed to track the others down by killing one of the right flank members, and putting my hood up. It was a risk, but it was worth taking. I saw through it a little too late to tell Annie, but I knew that she would catch on. She’s smart.

Anyway, I saw through the plan and realized that, if I had something precious to transport, then I wouldn’t place it on the right flank out in the open with so little protection. So moved inward, yet hung back. I think the only one who noticed was a man they referred to a few times as Gunter. I thought he would give me away, but I guess he decided against it at the last minute. Luck would have it, I was soon riding beside Eren. I had to fall back of course, as I was more so next to another member of the corps. I fell back quite a great deal, and that was when the flares started up. Annie was coming in.

That was when they sped towards the woods. I realized what was going on, and dropped back entirely before blending in with some scouts who had messenger duty to the left flank. I knew the plan so far was to get to the forest.

The forest isn’t good for titan shifters. They’re full of trees, which give anyone with ODM gear an advantage over a shifter in full form.

It is never hard to blend in with these damn hoods. I could have waited at the front with Reiner and Bertholdt. It would have been smart, and Annie could have had a bit of backup on her side. They were too packed in, however. They were almost sharing a branch with people, and they would have noticed if they left. I had no choice. I was Annie’s only help.

It broke my heart when she was captured, and even more so to see that commander Levi threatening to rip her out. I heard everything, but had to restrain myself. That was when she called those titans. I was able to fight a few of them off and get her out, and she shot right back up again once we came up with a backup plan.

First, I tried the easier path. I was the only one of us two with gear, being that she lost hers when she transformed, so it was easy to fly in low next to the group. I was hoping to just pick Eren up, but he was too far ahead when one of them noticed me. So I decided to weaken their team and I swung out. He wasn’t expecting it, so it was easy to cut him so deeply. Then all that was left was to fall back into the trees. That was Annie’s signal.

The plan went almost perfectly after that. I thought they had her for a while, but she got them quickly enough. All of the Levi Squad was killed, except for the captain himself. I figured that was our first mistake. Eren was captured easily enough, but then Mikasa and Captain Levi showed up to rescue him.

I almost gave us away, but I knew that Levi would be different than that other man was. He’d put up a fight I’m not prepared for, and then there would be no one to help if Annie had gotten into real trouble, which she did. Without her arms again, and after he severed her jaw, she was left a little ways back. I had to be careful about being seen, but I got to her in a good amount of time. I wasn’t letting her go back on her own, and she knew that. So she let me cut around her arms and legs so that she was free.

I carried her back to the Military Police that.

It took a while to calm her down, but I’m glad that I got to see her again, and she was glad too.

* * *

Living outside of Wall Rose is so boring. I haven’t even been inside the walls in a while. I live in this underground cellar, so it’s relatively safe. I’m supposed to be making a trip to the eastern city of Wall Maria soon- as it is still untouched by titans- but I just don’t feel like it. I feel rather depressed recently. I don’t know why exactly, but I feel like something went terribly wrong. I don’t know what exactly, but I feel like something’s gone.

* * *

I’ve made it to the thorn city of Sumiyoshi on the east side of Wall Maria. This house is spacious, I have to give it that. There are a lot of rooms, which I’ve never had in a home before. It’s actually really nice to have the room.

The town is abandoned of soldiers. The cowards left for the inner wall when Wall Maria broke. Some of the civilians left as well, because they thought being stuck in this bubble would corner them. Well, they were right in that respect. We allowed the humans here to stay, but the titan shifters have dominated this city. I’m not quite a leader here, but I’m still acting as the commander of my squad.

Dad is here, but he won’t so much as look at me. I should have known he wouldn’t , but again, it still hurts.

* * *

It’s been so long since I’ve seen anyone from inside the walls. I thought I’d be happy once I saw them coming back but, now I know why I was felling so upset a few days back.

Annie’s been captured. They’re torturing her, Bertholdt said. I can’t do anything to help right now, we have to wait. I understand that I can’t do anything to help or we’ll be found out, but as soon as I come up with a plan, we’re going for it. But, as a result, Dad hasn’t talked to any of us after they told him.

In other news, we have a new addition. Apparently, Ymir was a titan shifter all along. Not to mention, I was right about Krista. Or should I say, Historia. Princess of the Reiss family and heir to the history of the titans. Just what Eren has. I wonder what the story is behind that, but that’s for another time. We’ll be back in the walls soon enough, and our first objective will be Annie. Next, we’ll have to worry about Eren and little Historia.

Reiner asked if we’d have to hurt her and, to be honest, that all depends on if she somehow gets Eren’s titan power by the time we capture her. If she’s still human, than it won’t really matter. But a shifter is a different story. It will be our job to kill whoever has the titan’s screech- the same used to build the walls. Any way you slice it, Eren won’t make it out of this alive. If we act quickly enough, we can save Historia.

I think it would be nice if we can end up saving as many people as possible, Annie included.

We have to get her out soon.

And, you know what, I think that’s the only thing Bertholdt and I have ever agreed on.


End file.
